


Several Kinds of Fraternisation

by WolffyLuna



Category: Horus Heresy - Various Authors, Warhammer 40.000, Warhammer 40k (Novels) - Various Authors
Genre: Blind Date, F/F, First Dates, Lesbian Lotara Sarrin, Matchmaking, No Nails AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-17
Updated: 2016-02-17
Packaged: 2018-05-21 06:15:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6041272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolffyLuna/pseuds/WolffyLuna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sevatar, Argel Tal and Kharn end up matchmaking Lotara Sarrin and Taye Karenna. </p><p>They both end up agreeing to a blind date, against their better judgement.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Several Kinds of Fraternisation

**Author's Note:**

> This is set in [absurdfacts'](absurdfact.tumblr.com) No Nail AU. A good summary may be found [here.](http://absurdfact.tumblr.com/post/51485379333/)
> 
> Alternatively, if you don't want to read the whole post, just imagine it's set in an alternate Horus Heresy, less motivated by Chaos and more motivated by politics, and the Word Bearers are loyalists, that's all you really need to know for this fic.

Lotara stood in front of the mirror, buttoning her uniform shirt. She had a date tonight. Apparently. Kharn and Argel Tal organised it. (Tal looked a little to keen to be playing matchmaker. It was a disturbing look on an Astartes.) She pulled on the hem to straighten it, and double checked the buttons were in the right holes. The Blood Hand emblazoned the right hand side.

She tied her long brown hair up in a regulation bun with a regulation black tie. If she was going on a date, she was going to look like a flag captain. A relationship wouldn’t work if they were intimidated by her being an officer and a lady.

And it would give her an excuse to run away into the night if they were.

She frowned. This was almost certainlygoing to be a _disaster_. Kharn and Tal will have found some nice _man,_ probably a _civilian_ too-- Kharn was going to owe her several favours for convincing her to do this. And she’d explain to Tal that puppy dog eyes looked creepy on space marines.

***

Taye sat in the cab, and double checked the plastic carnation stuffed into the collar of her polo shirt. Sev had sent her off on a blind date. Well, _hopefully_ it was a blind date. Might have been an orgy from his (anatomically incorrect) description. At least it sounded like an all woman orgy? Though if it was, she was definitely overdressed. No way she could get out of these clothes quick.

The cab stopped in front of a restaurant, a little Nucerian place, the sort where you chair gets tangled up in the chair behind you. Probably not an orgy then. Though, considering what Nuceria was like... She payed the cabbie, and walked into the restaurant.

A smiling fat waitress bounded up to her as the bell tinkled over the door. “You are Taye?” she said, mangling the ‘aye’ sound and making her name sound like ‘tie’.

She nodded.

The waitress smile wider. “Come, come.” She waved her over to a two person table with a small metal ‘Reserved’ sign. Taye sat down, and the waitress handed her a menu. “It’s so exciting meeting new people, isn’t it?”

Taye nodded dumbly, hoping that was the right thing to do.

The waitress shuffled off. “Enjoy your date!”

Taye blinked twice in confusion, and then came back down to the planet. Checked her chron. _Damnit, two minutes late..._

A tall brunette in Naval captain’s uniform, the only other customer in the restaurant, stood up and walked over to her.

Taye stared. _\--She’s gorgeous._ She was amazonian, and walked like the restaurant was the bridge of her ship. She pulled out the chair opposite Taye. “Maybe I should have worn the carnation.”

Taye shrugged theatrically. “You know what Macragge cabs are like.”

“I haven’t been on planet long enough to know, but I’ll believe you.”

“Trust me, Nostramo’s are better. And that’s saying something.” She held her hand out to shake. “Taye Karenna. Apologies for being late, ma’am.”

The other woman took it. “Lotara Sarrin. And don’t ma’am me. I’m off duty.”

Taye grinned, showing too many teeth. “Aww, you’re no fun.”

Lotara ignored the comment. “Veiled Ones?”

“Hole-in-one. Ma’am.” Taye nodded at the Blood Hand. “World Eaters?”

“ _Conqueror._ ”

“She’s a good ship. With a good captain, too.” When _Conqueror_ came in system, ships ran. Taye didn’t have the hard on for terror that her Legion’s astartes had, but she respected it as a tactic. There was something to be said for a ship which made hardened admirals piss their panties.

Lotara smiled, closed mouthed, and sipped her water. “Thank you.”

The waitress came back, pad and pen in hand. “Ready to order?”

Lotara didn’t even look at the menu. “I’ll have the beef ball soup, thank you.”

The waitress scribbled that down. She turned to Taye. “And you?”

Taye flicked through the menu as fast as she could, and picked something random. “Uh... the ‘celebration dumplings’ please.”

The waitress nodded, and took their menus.

Lotara flashed a ‘being polite to service people’ smile and thanked her. She turned back to Taye, sliding her arm over the back of the chair and crossing her legs. “Feeling adventurous, I see?”

“I honestly have no idea what I ordered.”

Lotara waved a hand. “They’re delicious, but some people just find the ingredients a little off putting.”

“I’m Nostraman. Nothing’s off putting to me.”

“Then you’ll love them. They make them good here.” Lotara picked up her water glass, drained it, and refilled it from the bottle. “So who convinced you to come?”

“Sevatar.”

Lotara winced. “Oooh--”

“Yeah.” Taye tucked her fringe behind her ear. “He made it sound like an orgy.”

Lotara blinked twice, looking shocked.

“I’m worried his parents never gave him the talk.”

Her shock came out as giggle. “Well, I hope you’re not disappointed by my lack of nakedness. Kharn and Tal did the convincing for me. Space marines puppy dog eyes are creepy.”

“At least they didn’t make it sound like you were meant to come naked?”

Lotara bobbed her head from side to side. “True.”

The waitress arrived with their food.

Taye spiked a dumpling with her fork, and put it in her mouth. It tasted rich and unctuous, and little sweet? Barbequed liver was her best guess. She swallowed and spiked another. “They are good.”

They paused their conversation to eat.

Taye realised something. “This is several kinds of fraternisation, isn’t it?”

“We are attached to different legions.”

“Same expeditionary fleet though. Sort of.”

“While I’m not so sure about Sevatar, I doubt Kharn and Argel Tal would lead us astray.”

Taye waved her hand about, still holding her fork. “Hello? Are we talking about the same people. Tal was on _the other side_ until Kharn kidnapped him and bridal carried him across the galaxy. That’s, like, the handbook definition.” She paused. “Well, one of them.”

Lotara took a sip of her soup and looked to the side. “True--”

It was Taye’s turn to lean back on her chair and look charmingly rakish. “Hey, if this works out, now you’ll have a dark secret, captain.”

Lotara glared at her from under her lashes. (Taye resisted the urge to make a comment about her pretty she was when she was angry.) “I’m not in a trashy romance novel novel, I don’t need a dark secret.”

Taye leaned forward, elbows on the table and resting her chin on her hands. “You’d make a great dashing heroine though.”

“And what does that make you, the blushing ingénue?”

Taye grinned. “You make it sound like there’s not room for two dashing heroines.”

***

 _Conqueror_ and _Excoriator_ hung heavy in the void of Ultramar’s borders, in a standoff with _Red Tear_ and _Fidelitas Lex._

 _Excoriator_ ’s fighter squadrons scrambled, not to get into the void, but to be ready at the first shot.

Taye fought with her spinal sockets, when Lotara opened a private vox channel in her ear piece. the bridge clamoured in the background as Lotara spoke in Nostraman, “Try not to die. I’m not finished with you yet.”

Taye shook herself, and started sprinting towards _Relinquo_. She replied in the hive-dialect of Lotara’s homeworld. ““Don’t worry, I’ll be back to sweep you off your feet before you know it.”

Lotara spoke low, soft and guttural. It suited Nostraman perfectly. “Not if I sweep you off yours first.”


End file.
